Day 8: 10:00am-11:00am
| code = 8AFF19 | author = Manny Coto & Brannon Braga| director = Michael Klick}} President Taylor is forced to compromise her principles in order to keep an historic peace agreement on track. On the run from the law, Jack Bauer turns to a former ally for help on a mission to break Dana Walsh out of custody and obtain evidence against the Russian government. Episode guide * Charles Logan confronts Mikhail Novakovich about his country's involvement in the plot against President Omar Hassan. Soon after, contacts Logan to let him know that Novakovich agreed to return to the peace talks. * confesses the truth of the Russian conspiracy to President Taylor, and warns that if Jack Bauer gets this information out of the Russians' mole in CTU, the peace agreement will be over. *Under interrogation by Jack, reveals that she has audio and video files that can bring down the conspiracy and will release them for a pardon. *President Taylor tells that she will not grant Walsh immunity; he realizes that she is actively covering up the Russians' conspiracy. While being transported to McGuire Air Force Base for debriefing, he hijacks a helicopter and flies west toward Manhattan. Chloe O'Brian orders Agent Winnick to call the FAA and the Air Force. Falcon 1 flies low over Manhattan, as Chloe O'Brian desperately tries to convince Jack Bauer to land the helicopter immediately. She asks if he can hear her voice; Arlo Glass confirms that the comm link is active, but Jack is ignoring her. Cole Ortiz reports that two Air Force helicopters are closing in him. Two AH-64 Apaches flank Jack's helicopter on either side, as one of the pilots orders him to turn the stolen helicopter around and return to CTU. Jack continues to stall, then suddenly breaks left and heads into a steep dive, angling toward a helipad on the roof of the Cooper Building. While the pilot relays Jack's position to NYPD, Jack exits the chopper and runs for the fire escape on the opposite end of the roof. Meanwhile, two NYPD units a block away speed toward the scene. Still in sight of the Air Force pilot, Jack reaches the bottom of the fire escape and darts around a corner onto the street just as one of the squad cars enters the alleyway. The chopper loses visual contact when he passes beneath a tree, and moves to reacquire. NYPD officer Barreiro pulls up by the sidewalk and checks the alley, but Jack, walking with the pedestrians, has already blended into the crowd; they have lost him. Worriedly, Chloe realizes that Jack's goal is to break out Dana Walsh and uncover the identity of Renee Walker's killers, and suspects he will either accomplish this or die trying. She orders Cole out to the field to coordinate with NYPD on a grid search of the entire area, then tells Arlo to use satellite coverage and traffic cameras to track Jack from there. At the United Nations, Ethan Kanin gets off the phone after hearing an update on Jack Bauer's escape, just as President Taylor enters the briefing room. She is dismayed at the news that he has managed to get away, realizing that his quest for retribution may cause the end of the peace accords. Ethan notes that she may have a more serious matter to worry about: her involvement in covering up the Russians' attack on the United States is grounds for impeachment, and possibly criminal charges. He admits that she crossed the line, but it may still be possible to step back and make it right: agree to grant Walsh immunity and launch an investigation into the Russians' involvement in the conspiracy. Even if Jack fails to find the proof, Walsh's evidence is still at large and eventually will surface; while this course will bring the end of the peace agreement, it will save her administration. Ethan comforts her by acknowledging the sacrifices she has made to ensure that the agreement happened, and assures her that one day it will come to fruition, whether in her term or another. Finally, she relents, and tells him to draft a statement announcing the United States' withdrawal from the peace talks, to be issued at the press conference at the end of the hour. President Taylor takes the elevator to the residential floor, where she finds Charles Logan waiting in her office. She breaks the news of her decision to him, and is surprised at his willingness to accept it, considering his strong desire to repair his legacy. Taylor prepares to call Dalia Hassan, but Logan interjects that there may be a way to save the deal: Walsh can't be granted immunity, since her evidence would become public record, so she should be designated an enemy combatant and taken off the grid. He recommends a private security firm that he has had experience with as ideal candidates to "extract" the location of her evidence against the Russians; once they have it, she will become irrelevant. Disgusted, Taylor rejects the prospect of using physical coercion, something she has fought against her entire career. Logan, in turn, agrees that the idea is morally repugnant, but given the present circumstances, asks her to consider that it may be an acceptable price to pay for the greater end of achieving a lasting peace in the Middle East. He admits to regretting several actions he took as President, but notes that the experience taught him one thing: the power of the office can accomplish incredible things, but it often requires challenging our most sacred ideals. If she is unwilling to make that sacrifice for the sake of the peace agreement, he says, she should follow Ethan's advice and pull out now. Arlo Glass plays a feed of a busy crosswalk taken eight minutes ago at 25th and Cleveland, and isolates Jack Bauer's face among the crowd. Chloe tells him to send the information to Cole's teams, then takes a call from President Taylor. Taylor shares her fears that Jack will attempt to break out Dana Walsh and tells her that she has arranged for Walsh to be transferred to an off-site safe house in the custody of a private security firm. Chloe protests, saying that the security at CTU is more than sufficient, but Taylor reminds her that Jack still has several contacts inside the government who might be sympathetic to his plight. Taylor qualifies this by assuring her that she doesn't consider Chloe to be one of them, but she wants to take every precaution. The team, led by Mark Bledsoe, is scheduled to arrive at CTU shortly. After the call, Charles Logan reassures the President that she has made the right decision, despite her own misgivings. She tells him to make sure the team has a standing order to first apply every possible means of non-coercive interrogation before turning to actual torture, and laments that the situation has gotten this ugly. At an electronics store, Jack purchases a handful of cellphones and calls Chloe at CTU, asking her to help him gain access to Dana Walsh. Chloe does her best to persuade him to turn himself in, but he insists that the President is covering up a terrorist attack against the country and no longer has the right to keep Walsh from testifying. Eventually, he prepares to hang up, but Chloe stops him and asks what he plans to do with the evidence. Jack assures her that all he wants is to see that the people responsible can be held accountable for their crimes; finally, Chloe tells him about the plan to hand Dana over to a private security firm. She tentatively agrees to find out where they plan to take her by the time he calls her back. Jack ditches the phone in a trash can and uses another to place another call. In a basement apartment, a man with heavy scarring on his neck sees that the incoming call is on a scrambled line, then answers it on his headset. Jim is surprised to hear Jack's voice, commenting that the entire city is after him. Jack says that he's running out of places to hide, and needs Jim to help him get some equipment on short notice. Ricker is wary of allowing Jack to bring the authorities to his doorstep, but Jack reminds him that he wouldn't be alive today were it not for him, and he's calling in a favor. Finally, he agrees. Hailing a taxi, Jack lists what he needs: a comm unit, two MP5s, assault rifles, and body armor, as well as a surveillance package. Mark Bledsoe arrives with his team at CTU New York, and calls Jason Pillar at the United Nations. Before going in, he asks to clarify the plan for Dana Walsh once she gives up the evidence. Pillar suggests that they hand her back to CTU, but Bledsoe warns that she will still be able to make accusations, and suggests that the best course of action would be to kill her and set it up as if she were attempting to escape. Pillar expresses unease about this plan of action, but promises to speak to the client and get back to him. Chloe greets Bledsoe at the entrance to CTU, and walks with him to Dana's cell. She expresses misgivings about the team taking her to an unknown location, and asks to see the Presidential order authorizing them to do so; with the EMP attack causing instability in CTU's systems, the report sent from the UN may not arrive for another hour. Annoyed, Bledsoe brings up the order on his cell phone and hands it to her. As they continue down the corridor, Chloe apologizes for being so by-the-book, and covertly transfers the order onto a flash drive before giving back the phone. Bledsoe enters the interrogation cell and informs Dana Walsh that the President has designated her an enemy combatant, and ordered her to be transferred to an outside facility for interrogation. Dana becomes terrified as the guards pick her up and cart her away, yelling to Chloe that they're going to kill her. Bledsoe thanks Chloe for her cooperation and follows the two guards out to their vehicle. Once they leave, Chloe goes to the briefing room, downloads the order off the drive, and sees the address for the secure facility: 14633 12th Street. She appears to contemplate what to do, then calls Cole Ortiz, currently in the middle of a grid search with the NYPD. She tells him about Jack's call and admits that she almost gave him Dana's address, but she can't; she is under orders, and doesn't believe he's thinking clearly. Cole wonders whether Jack may be right about the President's collusion, but she reminds him that they have a standing order to apprehend Jack and that's what they are going to do. Hanging up, Chloe goes to the main floor and announces that she is mobilizing a sting operation in the field. The target: Jack Bauer. Jim Ricker watches over an extensive surveillance network as Jack Bauer makes his way through the hallways to his apartment and knocks on the door. After Jim opens the door, Jack asks whether he has the supplies he requested; Ricker sarcastically replies that it's good to see him, too. He shows Jack to the table where the weapons are laid out. Having listened in on police scanners, Ricker wonders what Jack did to get so many law enforcement agencies on his tail, and Jack explains that it's not something he did, it's something he's going to do. He calls Chloe to follow up on Dana Walsh's location. She feigns resistance, suggesting that he think his plan over, but then gives him an address: an industrial laundry at 141 Juniper Valley Road in the Middle Village. Jack agrees to call her as soon as he arrives, and thanks her for helping him out. Jack starts packing the gear into a large duffel bag, and tells Ricker that he needs him to be available to help him out later, saying that his favor isn't paid back. Reluctantly, he agrees to stay at the apartment and remain in contact should the situation arise. Cole Ortiz arrives at the Juniper Valley Road address and meets the four field team members assigned to the sting operation. He explains that the laundry was seized by the DEA a year ago and has served as a CTU safe house since then, but Jack cannot possibly know about it. Stressing the need for credibility, he orders agents Beck and Greer to act as sentries at the front and rear entrance, while he and the other two remain out of sight inside the building. Cole reminds them that Jack is a highly skilled operative, and if they wait for Cole's order to initiate the takedown, they should be able to capture him without much of a fight. Chloe calls Cole to report that Jack is on his way. Worried, she urges him to use non-lethal force if possible, but he replies that he can't ask his men not to fire if their lives are in danger. She promises to alert him when Jack calls her back; he orders his men to take their positions. Ethan Kanin brings the President a statement, citing President Hassan's assassination as the primary reason for America's withdrawal from the peace accords. Taylor informs him that she changed her mind and has chosen to proceed with the signing ceremony — Dana Walsh is in the custody of a private interrogation team that will extract the location of her evidence and ensure that the cover-up remains intact. Kanin can't believe how far she is willing to go to protect the lie, and guesses that it was Charles Logan's decision. Sitting down before her, Ethan explains that he is worried about what is happening to her, and suggests that Allison's presidency has cost her both her marriage and her children — perhaps she has come to believe that accomplishing this historic peace will somehow redeem that loss and make it all worthwhile. Despite his impassioned pleas, she declares that the debate is over and her decision has been made. Sighing, Ethan tells her that his conscience won't allow him to remain at her side if she continues on this course, although he promises to use his declining health as the reason for his resignation. She begs him not to leave her, now that they are so close to achieving their goal, but he remarks that now she has Logan to turn to, and doesn't need him. Going over her address for the press conference, Dalia Hassan calms her shaking hand. Jamot assures her that her nerves are to be expected under the circumstances, but Dalia worries that her ascension to the Presidency will be viewed as a grab for power, exploiting Omar's death. Entering the room, Kayla reminds her of what he used to say, that the best way to handle public misperception is to address it directly. Comforted, Dalia agrees, and asks Jamot to give them a moment alone. Kayla apologizes for her selfishness earlier, but Dalia says she understands; she lost her father and was afraid of losing her mother as well. Embracing her, Kayla wonders that so many people can so violently oppose the prospect of peace. Dalia replies: "Some people are so invested in their fear and hatred that peace is the most threatening thing they can imagine." Jack Bauer surveys the building Chloe led him to from behind a set of Dumpsters across the street. Seeing the sentry in front, he asks Chloe for another way in. Inspecting the schematics on the central monitor, she informs him that there is a side entrance north of the loading dock, as well as a secure room in the southwest corner, the most likely place for Dana to be held. Using a passing truck for cover from the sentry, Jack runs out of hiding and across the street. From inside, Cole Ortiz observes his progress and alerts Hopkins and Lee, who take cover behind a pair of opposite washing machines. Jack readies an MP7 and extends the stock, leaving the bag under a truck before making his way toward the side entrance. Using a mirror, he sees the rear sentry, and knocks on the truck's cab to draw him over. As soon as he nears the corner, Jack strikes out and knocks him unconscious. He lies to Chloe that he is in sight of the secure room with no hostiles in sight, preparing to go in, then takes out his comm unit. Jack hoists the guard onto his shoulders and walks toward the entrance. Chloe relays Jack's position to Cole and Beck, who make their way to the take down point, guns drawn, and hide behind two more machines in the same alley as Lee and Hopkins. All four men are surprised when a sack is hoisted along the ceiling bearing the unconscious body of Agent Greer. They fan out to search the area, and momentarily Jack incapacitates Agent Lee and holds the gun to his throat, yelling at the others to drop their weapons. After a tense standoff, they do so. Cole asks what tipped him off, and Jack simply replies that he knows Chloe. Once the three field agents are on the ground, their guns kicked toward Jack, he throws Cole his phone and instructs him to call Chloe and lie that the operation was successful, and Jack is in custody. Chloe picks up the call; Cole reports that the mission went off without a hitch, and Jack and his agents are unharmed. She notes that she should feel relieved, but admits that she only feels worse about what has come to pass between her and her friend. He reassures her that it was for Jack's own good, then ends the call. Jack shouts at him to secure his men. With the field agents handcuffed on the ground, Jack motions Cole to join him in the next room. He then reveals that his purpose in coming here and risking capture was to convince Cole to help break Dana Walsh out of custody, so that she can expose the Russians' involvement in today's conspiracy. Jack says he knows Cole well enough to understand that his conscience won't let him participate in the cover-up and, reminding him that he lied for Dana and kept her secret identity a secret, offers him a chance to make things right. Cole, agreeing, tells him that Dana was taken to a safe house a few miles away; Jack raises his rifle and orders him back into the other room, in order to keep up the pretense that Jack took him hostage for the other agents. Charles Logan is watching a news report on the imminent press conference when Ethan Kanin enters his office. Ethan reveals that his resignation is due to Logan's actions, and accuses him of maneuvering President Taylor into a corner for his own political gain. He claims that the treaty has too much blood on it to hold, and warns that if Logan's actions result in the President's downfall, he will make him regret it. Logan counters that President Taylor will be fine; by insisting on deniability, she proved herself to be much smarter than either of them gave her credit for. Then, mockingly, he expresses concern about Kanin's health and urges him to get some much-needed rest. Dana Walsh is brought, hooded, into a dark subterranean room, where Mark Bledsoe questions her about the "evidence" she told Jack Bauer about. Despite his warnings against resisting, she insists that it was a lie, and the evidence doesn't exist. At Bledsoe's motioning, the two guards drag her across the room toward a wooden table. President Taylor arrives at the press conference, where Dalia Hassan thanks her for the notes on her speech, and also for her unwavering support in the aftermath of Omar's death. Following an introduction from Press Secretary Angela Nelson, Taylor takes the podium for her address to the assembled reporters. She opens by describing the assassination of Omar Hassan as a devastating blow to both the IRK and the world, and a reminder that real peace often comes with a steep price. However, his death, as well as all the innocents who lost their lives during last night's crisis, cannot be in vain - peace must prevail, no matter the cost and no matter the compromise. Upon these words, Taylor sees Ethan Kanin, at the back of the crowd, turn his back and leave the lobby. Split screen: President Taylor concludes her speech, stating that the world has come too far and worked too hard for a better tomorrow to allow the accords to pass it by. Dana Walsh is tied to the table, while Bledsoe wraps a towel around her face and begins to waterboard her. Ethan Kanin enters the elevator. Chloe O'Brian and Arlo Glass watch the address at CTU, along with the other agents. Charles Logan watches from his office, smiling at the President's continued conviction. Jack Bauer drives with Cole Ortiz toward Bledsoe's safehouse. President Taylor proudly introduces Dalia Hassan as a woman of unparalleled strength and grace, chosen by her people to continue in her late husband's footsteps. Mrs. Hassan takes the podium to a wave of applause; she and they are all ignorant of the immoral cover-up happening behind their backs. Deeply displeased with being there, Mikhail Novakovich claps his hands obligatorily. And President Taylor watches, covering up her deeply divided emotions. '' Episode credits Cast Starring * Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer * Mary Lynn Rajskub as Chloe O'Brian * Katee Sackhoff as Dana Walsh * John Boyd as Arlo Glass * with Freddie Prinze Jr. as Cole Ortiz * and Cherry Jones as President Allison Taylor Special guest star * Gregory Itzin as President Charles Logan Guest starring * D.B. Sweeney as Mark Bledsoe * Nazneen Contractor as Kayla Hassan * Reed Diamond as Jason Pillar * Graham McTavish as Mikhail Novakovich * Necar Zadegan as Dalia Hassan * Navid Negahban as Jamot * James Hiroyuki Liao as Devon Rosenthal * Lesley Fera as Angela Nelson * with Bob Gunton as Secretary of State Ethan Kanin * and Michael Madsen as Jim Ricker Co-starring * Justin Alston as CTU Agent Beck * Mark DeLisle as Barreiro (as "NYPD Officer") * Mark Engelhardt as Air Force pilot Uncredited * Jeff Brockton as Security contractor * Trace Cheramie as Security contractor 2 * Brian Hite as Agent Lee * Hiro Koda as Agent Hopkins * Zach McCall as Air Force pilot * Sterling Rush as Agent Greer Production staff Background information and notes * Starting with this episode, Charles Logan is credited as "President Charles Logan" in the Previously on 24 segment in this episode, despite being more accurately credited as "Former President Charles Logan" during Season 6. * This episode marks the first appearance of veteran film actor Michael Madsen as Jim Ricker. He receives the "and" credit during the Guest star list. * This is the last episode to feature Bob Gunton as Ethan Kanin. * This episode marks the return of guest star Lesley Fera as Angela Nelson after an absence of 28 episodes. * The music that plays at the beginning of this episode is the same music that plays at the beginning of Day 3: 4:00am-5:00am when the virus is released at the Chandler Plaza Hotel and at the end when Michael Amador is killed. * When Jack Bauer calls Jim Ricker, asking for help, Jack requests two Heckler & Koch MP5 submachine guns. The weapons that he received were actually two Heckler & Koch MP7 A1's. * This episode has the third-longest final split screen at 39 seconds. (See also the top six.) * While Jack persuades Cole to join him in tracking down Dana Walsh, he states that Cole lost 4 of his field agents during this day (Torres, Johnson, King, and Owen). Jack was unaware of one other, an unnamed agent murdered—while he was elsewhere—by Farhad Hassan. See Deaths on 24. * The music that plays during President Taylor's speech, is the same music that played when Omar Hassan was being brought to Samir Mehran's hideout in Day 8: 7:00am-8:00am. * On Jim Ricker's computer screen, he has a list of weapons. The left hand column is made up of weapons from the Nintendo 64 game Goldeneye, and the middle column with weapons from the computer game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. See also Day 819 819